What to visit in ho chi minh city

A popular university studies program known as the "Semester at Sea" (SAS) recently brought more than 700 international students by ship to the port of Ho Chi Minh City, kicking off a five-day tour of the major parts of Viet Nam.
The program, put on each fall and spring semester by the Institute for Shipboard Education and sponsored by the Center for International Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, takes more than 700 students around the world on board the Explorer, a 24,000-ton ship that includes classrooms, a computer lab, a student union office, two dining rooms, a swimming pool, and a fitness center.
In Ho Chi Minh City participants were treated to a water-puppet show, a cultural tradition dating back to 11th century Viet Nam, at the National History Museum.
At a home for children suffering from exposure to agent orange
On Tuesday, the second day of the trip, a group of 14 students from the US and China made a courtesy visit to the Thien Phuoc (God's Happiness) … [Read more...] about Semester-at-Sea Students Relish Stay in Ho Chi Minh City

Owners of legitimate taxis see red as problem has not been solved for two decades; officials plead inability
On April 11, a cabbie in Ho Chi Minh City drove Nuraishah Hamza and her friend to a dark alley and locked them inside his car after they refused to pay him an exorbitant fare that was at least 40 times higher than the normal charge.
It was around 9:30 p.m. on that day when the two Singaporean women took a taxi in front of the Ben Thanh Market to their hotel on Nguyen Hue Street in the city downtown, about a kilometer away.
"The taxi driver did not stop at our hotel curb but at a road [adjacent] to it. The meter showed VND590,000 which was shocking to us as we only paid VND14,000 on a Vinasun cab on the way to the market," she said.
After they refused to pay the extortionate amount, Hamza said the taxi driver threatened to drive them to a police station, but finally stopped at a dark alley and insisted that they pay up after locking the doors and windows.
They gave him … [Read more...] about Mafia protecting fake cabs in Ho Chi Minh City

A U.S. blogger has recently caught the attention of food lovers by sharing a list of 25 must-eat dishes in Ho Chi Minh City, where to find and even how to eat them.
Mark Wiens, 29, who is now based in Thailand, spent around a month with his wife in Vietnam's most crowded city before publishing the review "Vietnamese Food: 25 Must-Eat Dishes in Saigon (and Where To Try Them)" on his blog.
The blog entry featuring videos, photos, and comments on the foods has gone viral in local media and on social networks whose users have been infatuated with what Wiens talked about.
In his review, Wiens introduced 25 dishes that he thinks people need to eat when they visit the city, including bánh mì (bread), phở (beef noodle soup), bún riêu (crab noodle soup), bún mắm (noodle soup served with dark-colored broth prepared with fermented fish sauce), bún bò Huế (spicy beef noodles prepared the way cooks in the central Vietnamese city of Hue do), bún thịt nướng (rice vermicelli with grilled … [Read more...] about 25 must-eat dishes in Ho Chi Minh City, recommended by US blogger

Three Vietnamese Americans who were family members were killed in a tragic accident which happened early Sunday in front of a processing zone in Ho Chi Minh City. The accident occurred on a National Highway 1 section in front of the Linh Trung Export Processing Zone, located in Thu Duc District, and claimed the lives of five people in a car. The crash killed Ly Van Sanh, 66, Ly Thi Dang Thanh, 31, and Pham Thanh Tung, 33, who were all American citizens of Vietnamese origin. The three were riding in a four-seat car. Among the casualties were Dinh Thi Hong Yen, the car’s 45-year-old Vietnamese driver, and Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh, 27, whose identity remains unknown. Sanh was Thanh's biological father, father-in-law of Tung, and foster father of Yen, Huynh Van Tiep, a relative of Sanh's wife, told Tuoi Tre(Youth) newspaper. According to preliminary investigation, around 3:30 am today, the car and a 45-seat coach were running on the above-mentioned stretch of National Highway 1 to … [Read more...] about Three Vietnamese-American family members die in Ho Chi Minh City accident

The world of online game addicts in Ho Chi Minh City becomes even more vibrant late at night than during daytime though authorities ban cybercafés from offering the service after 10:00 pm.
The shops operate like an ‘underworld’ behind closed doors to evade law enforcement agencies.
At 10:00 pm, all cybercafés are required to be close and clients to leave the front door, but their motorbikes are still kept.
The clients are shown the way to the entrance via the back door to avoid law enforcers.
All well-equipped online game shops visited by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters were operational the entire day even though they are prohibited from opening between 10:00 pm and 8:00 am.
At a shop named Cao Toc (High Speed) on D2 Street, Binh Thanh District, a group of three young men were surfing Facebook and listening to music to wait for their last and fourth member before embarking on an ‘online mission’ in a game one day. It was nearly … [Read more...] about In the world of online game addicts in Ho Chi Minh City

An Egyptian tourist that was robbed in downtown Ho Chi Minh City last week received a public apology from local authorities on Wednesday as she asserted that the incident did not ruin her feelings about Vietnam.
Representatives from the municipal Department of Tourism and the administration and police unit of Pham Ngu Lao Ward, District 1, came to see Alaa Aldoh at her hotel to offer their apology, which the 22-year-old vacationer accepted.
After hearing that Aldoh was robbed of US$230 in cash and an ATM card by two bag snatchers in the area on March 11, the administration arranged a hotel for her.
"We are sorry for all the bad things that have happened to you recently," Nguyen Van Cuong, deputy head of the tourist information support division at the tourism department, said to the tourist.
Le Tan Dat, chairman of Pham Ngu Lao Ward, who also offered Aldoh an apology, on behalf of local citizens gave her $230 to make up for the lost money.
The Egytian and a traveling … [Read more...] about Egyptian robbed in Ho Chi Minh City gets public apology, pledges return trip

With a week or more to do as they please, and much of the city shutting up shop, many expats in Ho Chi Minh City understandably choose to skip the country during the Tet holidays. As a result, what they never experience is this heaving metropolis at its most blissful. According to the venerable scholar and historian Dr. Huu Ngoc, Tet in Vietnam is a time for man to commune with nature and a time for the living to honor the dead. It is also a time for family reunions (and reconciliations) and, if you’re really filled with the joys of Spring, perhaps a détente with a neighbor, say, one who’s been renovating their house and slyly encroaching on your land, square inch by square inch, in the process. That is, if you are Vietnamese. For many expats in Ho Chi Minh City, ones without ties to local families, it’s a different story. Tet, if anything, is a time to pack your bags and run for the hills, or more likely a beach destination of your choice, Nha Trang, Da Nang, … [Read more...] about Tet in Ho Chi Minh City is oh so quiet

Taiwan Excellence Home & Living Experiencing Zone, an activity of the Taiwan Excellence 2014 campaign, which aims at bringing excellent lifestyles to Vietnam, makes its first ever presence in Ho Chi Minh City today. The three-day event, organised by the Bureau of Foreign Trade (under Ministry of Economic Affairs) and implemented by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), will run from September 19-21 at the Crescent Mall in District 7. Following the previous event held in July at Royal City (Hanoi), this experiencing zone at the Crescent Mall features 45 brands from different fields, including ICT, home-living, healthcare, sports & leisure and transportation industries. The ultimate purpose is to create opportunities for consumers to experience the most innovative, valuable and trust-worthy products from Taiwan. The returning brands to the campaign will let visitors experience their newest models, such brands include Acer, HTC, D-Link, BenQ (representing … [Read more...] about Taiwan Excellence excites visitors in Ho Chi Minh City

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s tight working schedule in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday did not stop him from enjoying a day-end jog around the southern hub.The leader has been in Vietnam since Wednesday for an official two-day state visit followed by attendance at several events within the framework of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week in Da Nang.Trudeau spent Wednesday meeting with Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi, where he and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc co-chaired a press conference announcing the historic establishment of a comprehensive partnership between Vietnam and Canada.On Thursday, the Canadian PM continued his trip in Ho Chi Minh City, where he met city chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong to discuss room for cooperation in service, banking, finance, information technology, education, and startups.Trudeau hinted at the possibility of Canada providing support for the southern hub to realize its vision of developing into a ‘smart city,’ … [Read more...] about Trudeau ends busy day in Ho Chi Minh City with jog along iconic canal